Argo II
by lunar0o0eclipse
Summary: Eight demigods travel back to Camp Half-Blood after they have defeated the giants, and love is in the air. DON'T read if you haven't read TLH!


The Argo II flew through the air seemingly effortlessly. Below spread a vast expanse of ocean, uninterrupted except for the occasional splashing of a dolphin jumping from the waters. The eight people aboard the ship didn't seem to think it was weird at all that they were suspended in the sky, in fact, they didn't even seem to notice it. They all looked worn out, but it was impossible to miss the grins plastered on their faces.

Greek and Roman demigods had come together successfully, and together they had prevented the giants from awaking Gaea fully and destroying Mount Olympus. In the process they had managed to save Percy Jackson and reunite Jason with his old friends. What was there not to be happy about?

Standing in a secluded corner of the ship were Percy and Annabeth, both looking a little worse for wear but looking as if they has just won the lottery. Her stormy grey eyes were locked onto his bright green ones and they stared at each other intensely, as if they were communicating with each other's souls. She reached up and stroked his blood stained cheek with a calloused, tender hand, relishing the feel of him being there, alive and in one piece.

This last year apart had been excruciatingly painful for them, but their relationship was as strong as ever. Anyone looking at them would have been oblivious if they did not think that they were totally and completely in love.

Percy wrapped his girlfriend in his strong tanned arms, pulling her to his chest. His purple shirt was ripped and was coated in some sort of sticky golden liquid, as was his face and his black hair. He leaned down to kiss her, but she smacked him playfully on the cheek.

"Don't you even think about it Seaweed Brian," she laughed. "You're not getting any of that ichor all over me! And besides, we have plenty of time for that later." She gave him a coy smile and pulled him closer, nuzzling her face against him and just breathing in his scent. Percy looked buried his face in her blonde hair and let out a satisfied smile. He was never going to let her go.

Jason looked on, shocked by the change that had come over his friend. Sure, she had always been cool, but he had never really seen her smile and look like she meant it. But after they had met up with Percy she hadn't seemed to be able to wipe the ridiculous smile off of her face. He liked this new side of her. It was genuine.

He glanced over at Piper, who was sitting with her legs over the side of the ship in an animated conversation with Reyna. Bruises marred her skin from where she had been tossed into the Acropolis and her right arm was in a temporary splint, but Jason had never found her more beautiful. She made Reyna, who was in fact a supermodel and a fellow daughter of Aphrodite, look like trash. Sure, Reyna had luxurious red curls that cascaded down her back, liquid blue eyes, and flawless pearly white skins, but she wasn't nearly as real as Piper.

Piper was extraordinary inside and out, and as he stood there thinking, he realized just what he had to do. He made his way across the ship in four quick steps, not wanting to lose his nerve, and put his hand on Piper's back.

"Can I talk to you for a second?" he asked, his breath catching in his throat. Well, this was it. All or nothing.

"I realized something, during this trip," he said. "I realized that you are perfect, even if you can manipulate people and don't care how you look. That makes you more perfect to me. And you don't care what other people think about you. And you're not afraid to stand your ground, even if you know you're going to get hurt. And-"

But he never got to the last part. Piper put her thin finger to his lips and looked at him with her ever-changing eyes. "You don't know how long I've waited for you to say that," and then she kissed him.

Leo clapped in his head. Beside him, Dakota breathed a sigh of relief. "I thought they'd never get together," the hulky blond boy said.

"I was beginning to wonder too," admitted Leo. "But, you know, the mighty Valdez is never wrong when he predicts these things!"

Dakota snorted. "Yeah right, man. Leo Valdez, son of fire, predictor of the future, and ultimate ladies man. You just keep believing that." He patted his friend on the back and walked over to comfort Reyna, who was staring at Jason and Reyna making out with a terrified look on her face.

"Dude, he loves her. It's written all over his face." Leo turned around to see Thalia looking at him with her hands on her hips and a smug look on her face. She had decided to join them on their journey back to Camp Half-Blood after she and the rest of the Hunters had helped them out in Greece.

"Yeah, he does," agreed Leo, suddenly conscious of his disheveled hair and sooty face. He ran his hand nervously through his curls and let out a weak laugh. "Really, though, it seems like this whole group's just pairing off. Weird, huh?"

Thalia nodded. "So Valdez, what are you up to next? Got some great adventures planned out already?" She leaned on the railing next to the steering wheel where he stood, her blue eyes occasionally looking over at him.

"Nah, not really. I'd kind of like to hang out in the Hephaestus cabin for a little while and just tinker around. Lately I've been having this dream about an exploding toilet, and I thought it might be cool to build it. What about you Grace?"

She sighed. "I guess I'm going to go back and keep going with the Hunters. Can I tell you something? Something you have to promise not to tell anyone else?"

"Of course Thalia," he said earnestly, "you know you can tell me anything. I'm like a diary that you can write all your secrets in." He winked at her, and he thought he saw a blush spread across her cheeks as she hid a smile behind her hand.

"Um…ok, her goes. I'm not sure I want to go with the Hunters when they leave this time."

Leo was shocked. Really, with all his future-predicting powers and everything, he had not seen that. "Really?" he asked, concern spread across his features. "I though you were happy with them? I thought that they were your 'brothers from another mother'- or whatever the girl version of that is?"

This time he knew he saw her blush, and it confused him. Why in Hades did Thalia Grace blush so much around him?

"Really, Leo, you're oblivious. If you want to know the truth, I'll tell you."

He waited expectantly.

"I'm interested in somebody. Like, I want to date them, and you can't do that if you're a Hunter."

Leo blinked.

"I like you!" she exclaimed, raising her head to the heavens and laughing out loud. "You boys can be so oblivious!"

He let go of the wheel and let it spin. This surpassed everything he had dreamed of. Thalia Grace? Liking him? That was retarded! But she still kept coming towards him, a determined look on her face.

He pinched himself. This wasn't real. This couldn't be real. He was imagining things. He'd really been killed by one of the giants and this was what death was like.

Well, if this was death, he wanted to stay dead forever.

She cradled his face in her hands, her long, thin fingers tracing paths on his cheeks. Leo felt like they made his skin burn, and he reached out to embrace her.

"Screw this!" she whispered, and grabbed him roughly, placing her lips on his and kissing him passionately. Wolf whistles sounded in the background. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her as close as he could to him, and suddenly he felt like his entire body was on fire.

He opened his eyes for a second to check to make sure he wasn't actually on fire, and noticed that Thalia was glowing with a golden light. That was definitely not normal. She seemed to notice that something was weird too, because she pulled away and looked down at herself.

Then, just as soon as it started, the glow faded. Thalia glanced up at him, a smile edging onto her face. "Artemis just took away my immortality."

"And you're happy about that?" Leo asked, shock filling his voice.

"Well, she was. She was happy for me. She told me that I shouldn't turn down true love."

"Well, what can I say," Leo boasted, "I the ladies love me."

"Shut up you retard," Thalia smiled. And then she pulled him in for another kiss.

THE END


End file.
